"L" stands for Large

[TheCarDoctor]

Saturday morning my Dad and I hit the "L" for our first tubing trip of the year. He had a newly installed motor to try out and I had a craving for some deep fried fish. We parked in the parking area south of the "L" and packed our gear down the hill trough the bushes, bugs, and trash. We launched a little after 7 and the water temp was 66 degrees.

The fishing was slow. After a few hours I was afraid of skunk but this little guy fixed that:



Then this one: (The first catfish I've ever caught on plastic)



As I was unhooking him and getting him in the basket, I noticed the line of my second pole was twisted around the basket. I got it free and what I first though was a snag, turned out to be another fish! And a Large fish it was. After seeing my excitement as my tube spun in circles trying to bring him in, my Dad made his way over and took a couple pictures:




When I saw it's head for the first time, I about jumped back in my seat seeing such a big ugly thing next to my legs. When we weighed it at home it came in at 28" and just over 9lbs. My biggest fish ever. []



Finishing the day was species #4, but I need help identifying it. It sure didn't taste very good. []


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[Hnaf]

Nice report, pictures & trip. We need to figure one of these out that I can join you and your Dad (kids optional). That a very nice cat you pulled in there! Think my largest is still just at about the 24" mark.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]Nice work. There is a rock pile right at the entrance of the L that is known by old-timers as the "cat-house". During the spawn it is crawling (swimming) with kitties...and some of the biggest ones in the lake. Looks like you found one of the daddy cats. Those things really do have big ugly heads.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]I noticed in pic #1 that you are also using the quick draw rod holder. How do you like it? I use them a lot...especially for dragging small jigs on deeper lakes. But I also get good use out of them for fishing jigs vertically in the deeper spots around the bubbleup and out off the Knolls. Sometimes those whities want a slow vertical presentation and they can keep two rods busy.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There seems to be a much larger population of bullheads (mudders) this year and more and more anglers are reporting catching them on plastics. I have always caught them on a variety of jigs but more this year. That's a good thing...as long as you like bullheads. And I do.[/#0000ff]
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[TheCarDoctor]

[quote TubeDude]
[#0000ff]I noticed in pic #1 that you are also using the quick draw rod holder. How do you like it? I use them a lot...especially for dragging small jigs on deeper lakes. But I also get good use out of them for fishing jigs vertically in the deeper spots around the bubbleup and out off the Knolls. Sometimes those whities want a slow vertical presentation and they can keep two rods busy.[/#0000ff]
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I haven't really used it yet besides resting a pole on it while I tie on a hook or a lure. I really like your open-bail-with-the-line-looped-under-the-cut-off-plastic-spoon design, which is what I've mostly been using for my bait pole. Although it does get annoying when the bait hits a slight snag as I'm moving around and the line comes out from under the plastic spoon. I've learned the less line I have out, the better.
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[TubeDude]

[cool][#0000ff]I have my "front deck" set up so that the rod holders are interchangeable. I run a screw through the open end of the fitting...as in the picture...and then cut grooves in both the quick draw and the bait rigger rod holders at the right spot. If you do it right it holds well and is easily changed when you change your fishing.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The ideal hold on the bait rigger clip is to hold the line firmly enough to not trip at every little hangup, but to release without too much pressure when a fish takes it. You can sometimes increase tension by moving the line further back in the clip. A more permanent increase can be made by wrapping the tape a bit further forward. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]There are times when the fish are finicky and will drop the bait if it does not release easily. On those days I put up with some "false alarms" from snags to avoid missing bites. It also pays to watch the rod tip. Sometimes it will just nod briefly when a fish picks up the bait. Then you can release the line from the clip by hand and the fish feels nothing when it begins to swim off. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]The bait rigger system is a lot of fun to use and really adds to the efficiency of dragging baits. As you become more proficient you learn little tricks to make it work better. One of my favorite tricks is to periodically do a body wiggle in my tube to add some action to the bait on the end of the line. It is surprising how often that triggers a munch from a following kitty...or a walleye.[/#0000ff]
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[TheCarDoctor]

My rod holders are interchangeable also, but I left out the screw because I like to be able to swivel the rods left and right.

Good idea on putting more pressure on the spoon to hold the line tighter. Maybe I'll try some rubber bands or something so I can adjust and fine tune it while on the water.
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